


5 Times Zuko and Katara Wrote to Each Other+1 Time They Wrote Together

by sansiva1203



Series: Zutara Week 2018 [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: 5+1 Things, F/M, Letters, Past Aang/Katara, Past Mai/Zuko (Avatar)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-31
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-19 03:43:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15501567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sansiva1203/pseuds/sansiva1203
Summary: it's your run-of-the-mill 5+1 fic that everyone loves, showing a series of letters between zuko and katara after the events of season 3.trigger warning: mentions of depression, anxiety, panic attacks, and nightmares





	5 Times Zuko and Katara Wrote to Each Other+1 Time They Wrote Together

**Author's Note:**

> written for day 2 of zutara week 2018, based on prompts on tumblr. set post zuko’s crowning as fire lord, canon compliant with a:tla, divergent from korra, rated g. unbetaed, but i am looking for someone to read my future zutara, so please hit me up in the comments for either any of my grammar mistakes or to be my beta.
> 
> trigger warning: mentions of depression, anxiety, panic attacks, and nightmares

Katara- Normal Text

_ Zuko- Italicized Text _

 

From: Katara

To: Zuko

 

Zuko,

I hope this letter reaches you safely and timely; I wasn’t expecting any special treatment just because I happened to save the world with you :) How were your first eight months as ruler of the Fire Nation? No troubles, I hope. Is Mai doing all right? Are we going to receive a wedding invitation anytime soon?

Everything back home is finally getting back to normal, though Sokka’s absence is still taking some time to get used to. But from (what little) he’s told us, things with Suki and the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors are going quite well, even if they do make fun of the fact that he’s the only guy there. Frankly, he deserves to get his butt kicked by them every once in a while. I can only imagine that he’s driving them crazy.

I don’t know if you’ve heard from Aang recently, but you must’ve at some point seeing as he’s the Avatar and you’re the Fire Lord and all that nonsense. He was here for a little bit, but a couple of months ago, he said he had to go all up out of the blue and left very abruptly. Do you think it had anything to do with Dad’s talk lately of trying to get me to settle down with a husband? I’m barely fifteen! Honestly, everything seemed a lot easier when we were just a gang of misfits traveling the world, trying to take down your dad. Haha. Are my jokes getting any better you think? 

Anyway, I just wanted to talk to you for a little bit. I know we’ve not always seen eye to eye, but we forged a really strong friendship back in the good old days, and I wouldn’t want to lose it for the world. 

Speaking of almost losing our friendship, has your wound healed completely? I know I left pretty soon after the whole mess, but I couldn’t just leave my home. I know you had plans to get staff from the other two nations, so I hope some Northern Water Tribe healers made it over. Is the scarring bad?

Don’t do anything stupid, okay? 

Love you, 

Katara

 

****

 

From: Zuko

To: Katara

 

_ Oh dearest Katara, _

_ How I have missed your voice, soft and melodious as honey; your touch, delicate yet powerful; your eyes, bright blue, windows to your soul. _

_ Okay, yeah, yeah, I know that was the most corniest thing I could’ve ever written, but in all fairness, the only words I’ve written in the past few months were professional and boring. I need something light and airy to take the edge off. _

_ To answer your first questions, I regret to inform you Mai and I are no longer pursuing a romantic relationship. The council was pushing for an engagement and I just couldn’t see us together in ten or twenty or fifty years. So no. No marriage invitations anytime soon. _

_ As for Sokka, I’m sure that he secretly enjoys all the attention. Maybe impressing a couple of swooning ladies with his terrible humor and less-than-adequate swording skills will finally get Suki to put him in line. _

_ And Aang. Come on, Katara, you have got to know about his feelings for you. When you met, he was a twelve year old boy looking at a girl for the first time in a hundred years. Naturally, some more than friendly feelings are harboring there. Your father wanting to get you married must’ve bothered him. I was assuming that you two were together, actually. Was I wrong? _

_ In regards to my health, I have fared better, but you thought correctly; the Northern Water Tribe, in hopes for a steady, if tenuous peace, sent over a master healer with several vials of spirit water. Although a scar is still present, they were able to finish up healing most of the internal injuries caused by the lightning.  _

_ You’ve talked a lot about your family and me, Katara, but what about you? Is it safe to assume that the Southern Water Tribe doesn’t talk much about mental health? That’s a fairly modern concept even here at the capital; I can’t imagine that you’ve heard of it before your travels. If you ever need someone to talk to, or just someone to be there for you, I can be at the South Pole in a week. By the way, I’m enclosing shy of fifty express-mail stamps. These’ll get your letters anywhere in the Fire Nation, Earth Kingdom, and Northern Water Tribe in a week, max. Of course you deserve special treatment; if not from the state, then from me at least. Let me know when you’re running low. _

_ If you’re ever feeling down, and it just won’t go away, or if some seemingly random things make you anxious or stressed out, or if you have really bad or reoccuring nightmares, or anything out of the ordinary, tell me. Please. We’ll get you over here, and there are people who can help. Who will help, if you let them. Please just tell me. I can’t lose you. _

_ Our friendship is one of the most important things to me. I don’t have a lot of time for myself these days, dealing with Fire Nation-y stuff and whatnot, but no matter what, I will always write back. Always. Until the day I leave this earth. _

_ With love, _

_ Zuko _

_ P.S. No, your jokes haven’t gotten better. Leave it to Sokka and Toph. I’m begging you.  _

 

****

 

From: Katara

To: Zuko

 

Oh Zuko, my one and only true love,

You know what, I never thought I’d ever say this, but you’re right. Being over emotionally sappy is really fun. Also, please burn this letter as soon as you’re done reading it, I can’t have blackmail material just floating around the Fire Nation.

Well, no beating about the greaseberry bamble, I guess. You’re right. Again. Don’t let it become a habit. But yeah, I guess mental health isn’t really a thing here. Either you’re happy, or you’re not. And I guess I have been a little down lately. And nighttime isn’t really the best. But it’s nothing to worry about, I promise you. Even with the panic attacks, I’m doing all right. But I wouldn’t be opposed to visiting you. If you’re okay with it, that is. Regardless of the people who could “help” me.

And you haven’t talked about yourself either, you know. It’s not like there’s a biography of you that’s updated every other week; you’ve got to keep me up on what’s hot with the Fire Nation!

You’ve got to admit, that was pretty good :)

And I’m really sorry about Mai, but it’s good that you’re happy now. Or at least not with someone who makes you unhappy. It’s too early for you to get married too! I mean, we’re both still teenagers! 

As for the Aang thing… I mean, you weren’t wrong at first, but I just couldn’t, you know! Everyone treated me as the Avatar’s girlfriend, and nothing else, like that was all I was ever going to amount to. I don’t wanna be known as someone’s this or someone’s that as the rest of my life, I wanna be my own person! And since I had to break up with Aang to do it, I guess everyone’s just awkward now. 

I’m really glad that you’re doing better now. Did the spirit water not heal the scar too? I’m actually a little confused to how the scar formed in the first place, so if you’re up to talking about it, I’d love to lend an ear. 

But going back to before my amazing joke, please tell me what’s going on with you! I know that I was pretty cruel to you back in the day, but I thought all that was behind us. So if you’re uncomfortable with talking to me, let me know, okay? Maybe we can talk it out when I visit. And for everything I put you through, sorry.

Also, thank you so so much for the stamps! We’ve been really needing them, especially since we’re so far away from the rest of the world.

And I’ll always write back too. Forever and always.

Tons of love,

Katara

 

****

 

From: Zuko

To: Katara

 

_ Katara, my love, _

_ It has been far too long since I’ve been able to devour your scent and worship the temple that is your body. Come visit me, lovely turtleduck. _

_ Okay, so that may have been taking it a little too far, but if you couldn’t tell, I was telling you to get your butt over here. I mean, if you’re not too busy making boys swoon over you, that is. _

_ No, your jokes aren’t getting any better. You obviously didn’t get that gene.  _

_ No but really, I’m sending this message with a personal courier, and he has specific instructions to deliver this directly to you, and wait and see if you want to come back to the palace with him. He’s completely trustworthy, I promise you, and you’ll be very safe. The entire journey will only take four days, so you’ll be back with me before you know it, if you choose to. _

_ You really can get help here, you know. It’s absolutely nothing to be ashamed of as there’s nothing “wrong with you”, as you might like to think. If it makes you feel any better, I’m getting help too for most of the same things you’ve been experiencing. It is a big deal.  _

_ The scar is kind of a long story, but if you want to know, I’d be happy to tell you. As you know, Azula shot lightning at you, and thankfully, I could intercept it. But, I didn’t have a proper stance, so the lightning was held in my body for far too long before I could redirect it, so it wasn’t an external wound that caused the scar tissue. I was trying to keep the energy away from my heart, so instead it tried to escape through my stomach. So yeah. Thanks for saving my life and all that.  _

_ So, changing the topic from unpayable life debts, I totally understand what you’re going through with Aang. Being your own person and all that? I think that’s amazing. You shouldn’t define yourself as a plus-one to someone else. You’re your own person, Katara, and if there’s anything I know, it’s that you’re going to do justice to your name. _

_ Lovingly yours forever,  _

_ Zuko _

_ P.S. Our rocky relationship is what led us here. You never have to apologize for that. _

 

****

 

From: Katara

To: Future Katara

 

Dear Future Katara,

If you’re reading this, that means you finally got the courage to go to the Fire Nation. If you’re not, well, there are gonna be some pretty confused mailmen over there.

You know why I’m writing this; you’re the one who wrote it! But, to give your forgetful self a little reminder, it’s because you know you love Zuko. Not sisterly love, but love love. And you’ve got to do something about it. You know that he’s not with Mai anymore, and from the way he’s been writing his letters, there’s got to be a spark, one you can explore at the Fire Nation. See, your puns are amazing!

But anyway, keeping it short and sweet: he’s smart, he’s hot, and he’s annoying as hell, but you know you wouldn’t trade him for the world.

Get it girl!

Katara

 

****

 

From: Zuko and Katara

To: The Gaang

 

_ Dearest friends and family, _

_ Fire Lord Zuko and Princess Katara are pleased to request the honour of your presence at their matrimony. _

Okay guys, Zuko said that we had to write that part, even though it’s a little too pomp and circumstance for my taste, but whatever.

It’s a long time coming, and it’s finally here: we’re getting married!

It’s been a long road, but we’re finally happy together, and we want all you to come! There’s gonna be a ton of food. We promise.

_ Yes, yes, it’s going to be fantastic, and all that nonsense. We’ve got meal cards for you to fill out, and the sooner you get your butts over here, the sooner we can get stuff figured out. _

Love you all!

Katara and  _ Zuko _

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading! every view, kudos, and comment truly makes my day and means so much for me, so if you think the fic is deserving, leave kudos and comments please!
> 
> come yell at me on tumblr: find me at veridian-nougat


End file.
